History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1196

USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II > Part 100

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

On December 25, 1886, the society received from Mr. Benjamin S. Brown, of Columbus, a donation of ten thousand dollars to be invested and known as the Benjamin S. Brown Fund, the income from which should be expended for chari- table purposes by the corporation receiving it.

On January 5, 1887, Mr. William G. Deshler addressed to the president of the society, Mrs. H. M. Hubbard, a letter containing the following passages :

Not long since I became possessed of a series of letters written by my mother, at Columbus, to ber relatives in the East, during the years of 1817 to 1827, in which year she died on August 2.8 Her portrayals of the suffering among ber neighhors, and in her own home, in consequence of the prevailing diseases incident to a new country, the failure of harvests and the cessation of business, tell us that the founders of Columbus struggled through years of great depression with a patient endurance that can hardly be comprehended by this generation. They also tell us that during all those dark years the wives nobly stood beside their husbands, sacrificing the necessities of life, and spending the little strength of their weakness for each other, and for the children. Her frequently expressed regrets for the little she did and the much she could not do for want of health and means, and her reflections thereon, have prompted the action now taken. I ask that the Columbus Female Benevolent Society become the almoner of my mother, Betsy Green Deshler, in accordance with the deed of trust herewith.

The deed here mentioned conveyed to the society the sum of one hundred thousand dollars " in assets at their cash value," and appointed George W. Sinks, George K. Nash, Andrew D. Rodgers, Rutherford H. Platt and Gilbert C. Hoover as an Advisory Board, they and their successors to have " the exclusive direction, control and management of all investments of money to be made in behall' of said trust." The deed further provided that a specific proportion of the income from the fund should, from year to year, be paid to the treasurer of the Hannah Neil Mission and Home of the Friendless for the benefit of that institution. Receipt of the assets conveyed by the deed was acknowledged by the Advisory Board on January 1, 1887. The next donation received by the society for permanant investment for its benefit was conveyed by will of Sylvester Medbery, of Colum- bus, March 25, 1887, in the following terms :

I give to the Columbus Female Benevolent Society five thousand dollars to be by them invested as a permanent fund, the interest from which to be used by them for the relief of the poor and needy of Columbus, Ohio.

On October 20, 1887, Mr. William G. Deshler addressed a letter to Mrs. H. M. Hubbard, president of the society, proposing as follows :

The need of a department for special work in the Columbus charities is known to those who have given the subject attention. Under its act of incorporation your society could establish such department if its constitution and bylaws be amended. Action is now taken because that can be done only at an annual meeting of the society, sixty days' pre- vious notice having been given of any proposed amendment. The date for the next annual meeting is January 4, 1888. Circumstances prompt me to provide, in part, at least, for that special work in the name of a loved daughter who for years was an active worker in your society. I desire to establish the Kate Deshler Hunter Fund of $33,000 as of date September 26, 1887, the income therefrom to be used as provided in the deed of trust.

The deed here named contained this section :

736

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

I do hereby expressly provide, and this trust is always to be subject to this provision, that the said Columbus Female Benevolent Society shall, through a standing committee, to be called the Kate Deshler Hunter Fund Committee, from the money coming into its hands from this trust, to give temporary aid and care to such worthy poor, married or lately widowed women who are or are about to be " in the perils of childbirth," and also such temporary aid to infants as the committee shall determine. In carrying on this work the committee may pay rent, procure medical attendance, medicines, nurses, food, fuel, clothing and such other necessaries as may be proper, and extend such assistance for such length of time as each case, in the opinion of the committee, may require. The committee shall also endeavor to keep so advised that it can promptly aid in procuring wet nurses for those applying in cases of emergency.

The Advisory Committee named for the administration of the Betsy Green Deshler fund was appointed for like service as to the Kate Deshler Hunter fund. These munificent gifts by Mr. Deshler were all acknowledged and accepted in appropriate terms by the society, but they by no means exhausted his generous intentions, for on November 27, 1889, he addressed the president of the society as follows :

The constitution of your society provides, as a part of its work, the physical improve- ment of orphans and other poor children. There are and always will be in Columbus such children who are crippled from birth by disease or accident, needing care and mechanical or other appliances to cure. ameliorate or enable them to become workers for their own support in whole or in part. Through your society I desire to provide for some of such afflicted chil- dren, regardless of color, nationality or religion, who are under fourteen years of age and whose parents or parent have lived in Columbus continuously for two years. I desire to establish the Deshler Hunter fund of $17,000 as of date November 12, 1889, the income there- of to be used as provided in the deed of trust herewith. Your work will be the wider spread because I am sure that the best medical and surgical advice and skill will always be gladly given, "without money and without price;" also because temporary care in public hospitals or charitable homes in Columbus will always he had at nominal cost. Necessity for practical good results alone compelled the exclusion of children whose conditions are so hopeless of betterment that they could not become in part, at least, self supporting.

The deed of trust which accompanied this communication was substantially the same as to form and conditions as the deeds which had conveyed Mr. Deshler's previous donations.

The total annual receipts of the society in various years subsequent to 1857 were as follows : 1859, 8342.51 ; 1864, $926.54 ; 1865, $2,373.86 ; 1866, $2,331.73; 1868, 88,433.98; 1869, $3,799.45; 1870, 82,976.80; 1876, 83,770.13 ; 1888, $7,559.52; 1890, $10,219.51. The total permanent fund of the society in January, 1891, was $205,507.32.

On the evening of January 5, 1885, a celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the organization of the society took place at the First Congregational Church. Rev. Washington Gladden, D. D., pastor of the church, presided on this occasion and was one of several speakers who addressed the audience present. Mr. William G. Deshler and the president of the society, Mrs. H. M. Hubbard, deliv- ered semieentennial addresses. The address of Mr. Deshler contained the follow- ing interesting passages concerning the nature and extent of the society's work :

Not one cent is paid, nor a single article retained as pay, perquisite, salary or personal expense by anyone connected with the society . . . Since 1869, the cash handled amounts to $51,200, while the expenses have been $122, being less than twentyfour cents on each hun- dred dollars

The society pays rent, dispenses medicines, provides fuel, procures nurses, purchases food, but gives no money to the poor. The impositions of short weight and scant measure, so often practiced upon those compelled by poverty to buy in small quantities, are prevented, while fair prices and good quality are secured. The cash value of the unnumbered articles of clothing and furniture, and the fuel and medicines collected and distributed, can not be given, nor even estimated ; page after page records these without affixing valuations.

John Paul

737

CHARITIES.

During the later years sudden emergencies under great publie calamity have called the machinery of the society into full and immediate action. Being always at work in its own sphere, it was thus ready to take the lead and continue to the end in properly gathering and distributing. The Chicago fire, the Ohio and Scioto River floods and the " stonepile year " are notable cases. During the rebellion the society was constantly and industriously at work for the widows and children of the " brave boys who fell." The work thus done, the moneys thus handled, the garments thus made and the medicines and delicacies thus distributed are not included in the figures above given ; they embrace only the regular work among the poor in Columbus.

Mrs Hubbard, in the course of her remarks, thus referred to some of the more prominent workers of the society :

Miss Mary E. Stewart, afterwards Mrs Joseph Geiger, discharged the duties of secretary and treasurer for eleven years Mrs. Alfred Kelley, at one time vice president, is remem- bered as one devoted to the work, who, while rarely absent from the meetings of the society, manifested her interest by generous contributions to the last day of her life. Mrs. John N. Champion was a zealous worker, for thirty years a visitor. . . . Mrs. John Butler completed a term of thirtyeight years as visitor.

At the time she gave utterance to these statements Mrs. Hubbard had been president of the society for eighteen consecutive years. An active worker of Very precious memory was Mrs. Richard D. Harrison. The same may be said of Mrs. Harriet E. Ide, Mrs. James L. Bates, Mrs. William M. Awl and many others who, although they have vanished from scenes of earthly activity. yet live in the affections and the usefulness of multitudes whom they have comforted or redeemed.

ORPHANS' HOME.

On November 16, 1858, a meeting of ladies representing the different churches of the city was held at the Second Presbyterian Church. Doctor William M. Awl presided, and Mesdames J. S. Hall, A. M. Gangewer, J. J. Janney, William Richards and J. N. Champion were appointed to prepare a constitution for an association the purpose of which should be to establish a home for orphan chil- dren. At an adjourned meeting Doctor Awl presided and the following ladies, each representing one of the Protestant religious societies of the city, were ap- pointed members of the board of managers : Mesdames W. W. Mather, L. Kil- bourn, J. Bartlit, W. E. Ide, Allen K. Mees, W. J. Emmett, A. M. Denig, Ambos, Jones, N. C. McConnell, Taft, S. M. Smith, Doctor Andrews, Lehmann, Vogle, H. Baldwin, L. Heyl and Wood. The following managers were appointed for the wards: First, Mrs. Champion ; Second, Mrs. G. Denig; Third, Mrs. J. J. Jau- ney ; Fourth, Mrs. D. Stone; Fifth, Mrs. Hoster. On January 5, 1859, Miss Kate Chase was chosen secretary of the association, vice Miss Kate M. Tuttle, resigned. A house was engaged and fitted up for the reception of orphan chil- dren at Number 126 Front Street. The managers held their first meeting on February 1, 1859, Mrs. A. M. Gangewer presiding, and instructed the matron to receive all children presented for admission, pending investigation by a com- mittee. In April, 1859, John W. Baker donated as a permanent site for the home a lot near the Asylum for the Insane. On petition, pursuant to an existing statute, the Probate Court appointed as trustees for the institution Messrs. John Noble, Luther Donaldson, C. P. L. Butler, N. B. Marple and M. B. Bateham.

47*

738

IHISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

On November 1, 1859, the Society of the Orphans' Home of Columbus held its first annual meeting in the basement of the First Presbyterian Church. ' At this meeting reports were received from the executive committee, managers, treasurer. matron, trustees and physician, and the constitution was so amended as to provide that at an annual meeting to be held on the first Tuesday in November of each year a board of managers should be chosen consisting of two representatives from each Protestant congregation and two from each ward in the city, this board to elect a president, a vice president. a secretary and a treasurer. Twentytwo churches were represented at this meeting : the following managers of the home were appointed : John Noble, C. P. L. Butler, Luther Donaldson, M. B. Bateham. On November 8, 1859, the following officers were elected : President, Mrs. John S. Hall ; vice presidents, Mesdames A. N. Gange- wer, M. B. Bateham and John Miller ; secretary, Mrs. E. King ; treasurer, Mrs. W. B. Hawkes. The matron of the home was Mrs. Force ; its physician, Doctor W. L. McMillen. On October 1, 1860, an appropriation of $300 for the benefit of the institution was made by the City Council. In 1861 the home contained thirteen children ; in 1863 there were seventeen new admissions making, in all, twentysix children cared for during that year. The whole number of children received in 1865 was 205.

We have now reached a point at which, in order to trace the history of this charity, it is necessary to take up and follow another chain of events. On Novem- ber 3, 1860, Jacob Hare, a native of Pennsylvania who bought a lot on High Street and settled in Columbus in 1812, died at the age of seventynine years. Mr. Hare's fortune at the time of his death amounted to about $46,000, all but about five thousand invested in real estate. His will bequeathed to his wife - " Seeny Ann Hare, formerly widow of John Bareus and daughter of Tarleton Thomas " __ all his household goods and an annuity of $200 to be increased to $250 after five years, provided she should remain unmarried. He gave nothing to his children, of whom there were several, but disposed of the residue of his possessions in the following terms :

All the balance of my estate, after the settlement thereof and the allowance to the widow as above provided, both real and personal, or of whatever nature or kind it may be, I give, devise and bequeath to the City of Columbus, in the State of Ohio, to form a charity fund for the benefit of the poor and unfortunate of said city. It is to be kept separate and distinct from all other city funds, but it is to be forever under the care, management and con- trol of the City Council. . and they shall at such time as the state of the fund will jus- tify it, erect a suitable building or edifice to be named the Orphans' Home or Beneficial Asylum and used for the benfit of the fund and institution berein and hereby contemplated.

William T. Martin was named as the preferred and James Cherry as contin- gent executor of this will, a copy of which was presented to the City Council on April 15, 1861, and was referred to a permanent committee designated as the Hare Charity Fund Committee, the members of which were Messrs. Stauring, Wilson and Comstock. Suits brought by the wife and children of Mr. Hare to set aside his will resulted in a compromise which was agreed to by the parties litigant on July 11, 1863, and on November 30 of the same year was judicially confirmed. Thereupon a committee representing the City Council received from William T. Martin, Hare's executor, assets to the value of 87,036.57. In reporting this trans- action the council committee recommended that, in accordance with the purposes of the bequest, a building suitable for an orphans' home should be erected within the city, and accordingly, on December 21, 1863, a resolution was passed directing the standing committee on the Hare Charity Fund to report to the council plans for the equipment and government of such an institution. This action seems to have been barren of important results, and the administration of the Hare charity developed no further noteworthy event until February 19, 1866, when the trustees

739

CHARITIES.

of the Columbus Orphans' Home Society, above described, adopted the following resolutions :

1. That for the purpose of more efficiently promoting the object of the institution, all the property. real and personal, of the same be and hereby is offered to the City of Colum- bus as an addition to the charity fund established by the will of the late Jacob Hare, to be applied in connection with said charity fund to the erection and maintenance in the city of Columbus of an Orphans' Home, as is contemplated in said will.

2. That, as the value of the property referred to in the foregoing resolution amounts to the sum of six thousand dollars, the offer hereby made is upon the condition that the like sum be appropriated from said charity fund to be expended in the erection of the necessary buildings.

3. That upon the arceptance of this offer the president and secretary of the board are directed to convey to the City of Columbus, or to its assigne, the real estate belonging to this institution, and to transfer in like manner its personal assets.

On January 28, 1867, these propositions were accepted by the council, and Mr. J. C. Toll, councilman from the Third Ward, was appointed to receive in the name of the city the deeds, bonds and property of the institution known as the Columbus Orphans' Home. An ordinance providing for the establishment of a home for orphan children was then passed and Messrs. Robert Chadwick, Chris- topher Kammerer, W. J. Feil and Isaac Beekey were chosen trustees of the insti- tution." On taking charge of the property donated by the Columbus Orphans' Home Association these trustees found. the building then in use by that associa- tion in a very dilapidated condition. The average number of children cared for under its roof in 1866 was twenty ; the average expense for each child about $1.50 per week. When the directors undertook to indenture the children about half of them were removed by their friends. The average number of children in the Home during the year 1868 was thirteen ; during 1871 the whole number cared for was fourteen. The receipts for the year ended March 31, 1872, were $2,007.50 ; the expenses, $2,059.33. In his report for 1871, the Secretary of the Board of State Charities, Rev. A. G. Byers, made some references to the institution which were the reverse of complimentary. In the course of these allusions Secretary Byers said :

Of course it would serve no good purpose of your honorable board to reiterate stories of indecency and wrong which, though now only traditional, are sad facts in the history of this welldevised but certainly badly managed charity. That it has been badly managed is as palpable now as that its present condition is one of pitiable neglect. The building is one of a large block situated on [West] Town Street between High and Front streets (the very cen- ter of business in Columbus) familiarly known as the "Eight Buildings." Nothing could be more ineligible than this building, both as regards its location and construction. It is four stories high and contains but ten rooms. From basement, to roof it is out of repair. . . . Not a green thing, nor anything having an appearance of comfort, is to be seen anywhere about the institution, save that there were evidences of kindness and real maternal sympathy upon the part of the matron toward the unfortunate children. There were ten of these, some at the public schools, others at play in the filthy yard. . . . Mr. Chadwick informed me that during the entire spring and summer not to exceed ten dollars had been expended for vegetables out of the fund appropriated for the maintenance of the Home, and that probably nothing but the personal expenditures and care of Mrs. Lonnis, the matron, had averted scurvy from the children.

Secretary Byers recommended that, if possible, the Home should be trans- ferred to the " care of the Ladies' Benevolent Society, or some other private char- itable organization." Evidently, as a manager of benefactions for the poor the City Council did not strike him as a brilliant success.

By an ordinance passed in March, 1868, the Probate Judge was authorized to send uncaredfor children to the Home. Four years later Mr. J. J. Janney reported resolutions to the City Council declaring that the management of the Home had not been satisfactory and directing its discontinuance. On May 27, 1878, the

740

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

council committee on the Hare Orphans' Home reported that the buildings, on Town Street, then occupied by the Home were unsuitable for its uses and recom- mended that they be sold. Resolutions embracing these suggestions were sub- mitted by the committee to the council and adopted. On November 4, 1878, the council, on unanimous recommendation of the committee on the Hare Orphans' Home, adopted a resolution accepting a proposition from George B. Okey to exchange property comprising one and onethird aeres of ground for the Home property in the Eight Buildings and the sum of $3,800 to be paid from the Hare fund.

In 1883, at the suggestion of Mrs. Harriet E. Ide, the managers of the Home for the Friendless offered to receive and care for the children, ten in number, then supported from the Hare fund. This proposition was accepted, the council agree- ing to appropriate from the fund and pay to the institution receiving the children the sum of $130 per month. This arrangement was considered favorable to the city and proved to be beneficial to the children. The property of the Hare fund, on Woodland Avenne, was meanwhile let on lease. On May 29, 1888, the trustees of the Hare fund decided to terminate the contract with the Home of the Friend- less, and employed a matron to take charge of the children. The institution now occupies its property on Woodland Avenue, where twentyseven children are being cared for.

On May 19, 1890, the City Council adopted a resolution instructing its com- mittee on the Hare Charity Fund to make a full report of the administration of the fund from the time of its origin to that date. An attorney employed by this committee to collect the information desired submitted a very imperfect report which he stated was the best that could be compiled from the records, the keeping of which had been extremely slovenly. In the course of his report the attorney said :

From an examination of the records in the office of the [City] Treasurer I am unable to find any answer showing receipts for any money, bonds, stocks, etc. ; neither can I find from the record in the Probate Court just what the executors turned over.

The attorney further stated that he had been unable to obtain from the books in the City Clerk's office "the annual statements of receipts and disbursements for any years prior to 1876." The report contains a list and statement of terms of the different leases of the Hare property constituting the Orphans' Home fund, but furnishes no appraisements or estimates of value. In submitting this report the committee acknowledges that it shows gross negligence " on the part of those who are authorized by the City Council to have the care and management of this bequest." The annual rental under existing leases was reported by the committee at 82,015, which is considered, by persons competent to judge, a very small return on the value of the property. On the whole it may well be doubted whether the estate of Jacob Hare would not have accomplished more good thus far, had it been permitted to go to his legal heirs.

WOMAN'S HOSPITAL.

An institution bearing this name was organized on December 18, 1867. Its original officers were : President, Doctor S. M. Smith ; secretary, James A. Wilcox; trustees, James L. Bates, J. F. Bartlit, Joseph Hutcheson, A. Huston, Thomas Lough, Peter Ambos and William A. Neil.

741

CHARITIES,

WOMAN'S HOME.

A refuge for destitute, fallen and unfortunate women was established under this name on February 15, 1870, by the Woman's Christian Association, which had been organized during the preceding winter. It was opened on April 15, 1876, under the management of Mrs. L. V. Desellem, who was one of its most active founders. Mrs. Desellem had previously been engaged for several years as matron of the Ohio Penitentiary. The Home occupied a brick building leased for the purpose on East Rich Street. It was supported entirely by the voluntary contributions of its friends and patronesses. The association charged a fee of one dollar for active membership, five dollars for sustaining membership and twenty- five dollars for life membership. The annual report of the association for 1870 showed a roll of 286 active, 44 sustaining and 11 life members. Mrs. James L. Bates was the first president. In 1874 the Home occupied a building on Long Street, in East Park Place. On May 4 of that year Mrs. Desellem retired from the position of matron. The institution accomplished much good, and was a forerunner of other charities in the same field. Its present successor is the

HAIG MISSION,

which takes its name from its founder, Rev. James Haig, who, in 1889, established a regular mission at the corner of Washington Avenue and Mound Street, where religious services were held three nights per week. Mr. Haig has succeeded in reinforcing his own very zealous efforts by the cooperation of numerous repre- sentatives of the Protestant churches, and has opened a Bethel for the rescue of fallen women on South Seventh Street.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co Publication date: 1892 Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co. Number of Pages: 1196

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1196